April 27, 2010
We are pleased to announce Dr. Bill Skeen as the new executive director of PNHP California. Bill earned a B.A. from Stanford, and attended medical school at the University of California, San Francisco. Bill also received a Masters in Public Health from the University of California, Berkeley. He completed his residency in emergency medicine at the University of Southern California and practiced emergency medicine for nine years.
Pursuing his interest in public health, Bill became director of grassroots programs at AIDS Project Los Angeles where he developed innovative community-based advocacy programs. From 1996 to 2000, he served as director of public policy and interim executive director for Florida AIDS Action. Later, he co-founded Union Positiva in Miami to provide culturally and linguistically appropriate prevention services for HIV/AIDS and hepatitis in the Latino community. Bill is fluent in Spanish and keenly interested in the need for high quality health services for minority communities.
Since 2008, Bill has worked with Soapbox Consulting in Washington, D.C., helping national health associations develop effective legislative advocacy at the grassroots.
Bill joined the California chapter of PNHP at its founding in 1987. Over the past year he has been a highly active volunteer guiding development of our “Single Payer Can Happen” work plan. He writes: “I’m thrilled to have been selected to work with this organization of talented and committed health professionals to see how quickly we can make single payer a reality in California. We’re going to concentrate on three areas – education, advocacy and growth. Over the coming months, we’ll be rolling out new programs in each of those areas designed to strengthen our organization and advance the single payer movement.”
Please join us in welcoming Bill to the California Chapter of PNHP by writing him at Bill@pnhpcalifornia.org. We’re looking forward to working with Bill to strengthen our base and advocacy.
Respectfully,
The Executive Committee, PNHP California